Reason in the Stoic ‘Horatio’ in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Jala Al-Din Al Rumi: A Comparative Study

Abstract

The debates over the individual’s awareness of reason, power and repression of feelings are identified as the image of Stoic philosophy that is depicted by Zeno of Citium around 300 BC. This current of self-management that prevents the turnings of life to depict the traits of one's personality is known as Stoicism. The core of this study is to investigate how influential is this philosophy on the minor character, Horatio, in William Shakespeare's Hamlet. The study will also shed the light on another Stoic figure whose spiritual world of ethics, particularly reason, is set in comparison to Horatio; Jelal Al-Din Al Rumi: Rumi. For the aim of establishing a good setting, the article illustrates a summary of Stoicism, its historical background, definition, and practices. In addition, a description about Horatio and Rumi and how they are compared as antique Roman-like Stoics in terms of power over thinking and judgement. The final part of this research will take in consideration the findings and the influence of how this philosophy could be probably part of the individual’s active life in which reason is dominant as ‘eudaimonia’.

Keywords

• reason
• Stoicism
• Horatio
• Rumi
• philosophy
• comparison

References

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